Arthur's Pain

„Listen, there's something I want to say before we do anything. And believe me, this is the hardest decision of my life. I'm crazy about you, and I know that under different circumstances we would be perfect for each other. You're so sweet, so unbelievably sweet, and I think that's part of the problem. I guess I'm a sweet tooth,” Arthur said and smiled a nervous smile. “My god, the moment I first lay my eyes on you, I could tell that you meant trouble.“ He let out a deep sigh, thinking about the seriousness of the matter. He couldn't believe the situation he found himself in. How could this happen, he thought.

He looked out the window, if for no other reason then at least to avoid eye contact. It was the first sunny day in weeks. The sky was exceptionally blue and the wind felt brisk but not so cold anymore. On his way to the café Arthur even thought he could taste a hint of spring in the air. People were wearing lighter clothes and little smiles on their faces, children were licking ice cream cones and chasing pigeons. The cars driving by were reflecting sunshine, multiplying its rays in all directions. One of them met Arthur's eyes and made him squint.

  
“You know,” he continued, now looking down at his nervous hands, “I'm married. Happily married. And I love my wife very much. Tina and I look out for each other, make sure that we don't make any mistakes. That's why I feel so bad.” With a cotton handkerchief he dabbed away traces of guilt from his forehead. “I mean, it's not too late, we technically haven't done anything wrong yet. But the problem is, I mean, here you are, and that's bad enough, right? I got you here and I'm looking at you right now, aren't I? My god, how am I going to explain all this to Tina? She will be tremendously upset with me. Have you got now self-control, she'll say. How can I ever trust you again, I can already hear her say.” Arthur shook his head.

A waitress walked passed their table and collected empty dishes. “Are you okay, sir?” she asked on her way back. “Can I get you anything else?” Arthur looked up and watched her put his coffee cup and saucer on her tray; the two sugar cubes were still neatly wrapped. “No, thank you,” he said, “everything's fine.” The girl smiled again, this time with a bit of sympathy. When the waitress left, Arthur said: “I just couldn't resist you. You and your foreign name. French, isn't it? And the way you're dressed, just beautiful, so golden brown. How could anyone resist you.”

Suddenly the door opened and for a few seconds the previously muted sound of the street was loudly audible. It was Tina. As she approached his table Arthur froze. His eyes moved around the table, unable to make anything disappear. Tina sat down and her smile immediately faded.

   “Arthur! Are you out of your mind?” she said. “What were you thinking?” Arthur remained silent. “What, did you think I'd never find out?” She was genuinely upset, but she kept her disappointment caged.

   “You have every right to be mad at me,” he said.

   “Mad? I think you're the one who's mad! Don't make me cause a scene, my dear. And it's not the first time, either. I can't believe you went behind my back!” She looked at the table in disgust. “I thought we could trust each other. Look at this little –,” she was searching for words, “Arthur, what is this?”

   “It's called pain au chocolat. It's French and –”

   “I don't care if it's French. The last time it was a waffle from Belgium, the time before that it was a cake from Russia, and the time before that it was some treat from Asia. I can't let you out of sight for five minutes without worrying about you.”

    “Are you still mad?”
  “Of course I'm still mad,” she shouted, then calmed her self again. “But apparently I can never be mad enough. Honey, you're a diabetic. You know what that means. You must think about the consequences. I mean, you're a grown man and I can't loose you to a French whatever.”

   “I'm so sorry, honey. It's called pain au chocolat.”